- Chris MacDonald is a Toronto-based ethicist, professor, speaker and consultant.
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Category Archives: ethics
Ethics of the World’s First Synthetic Burger
So, the world’s first synthetic burger has been cultured, minced, fried and consumed. (Mark Post, the scientist who conceived of and grew the synthetic burger, had announced a year and a half ago his near-term intention to produce and test … Continue reading
Posted in agriculture, animal rights, animal welfare, biotechnology, ethics, factory farms, meat, natural, science
4 Comments
Ethics of Small Choices
Yesterday, on my Business Ethics Blog, I published a short blog entry about an ethical dilemma faced by a coffee shop. The dilemma — and disagreement between co-owners — was whether to offer the standard range of sweeteners and whiteners … Continue reading
Posted in choice, ethics, health, marketing, natural, nutrition, restaurants, values
5 Comments
The Complex Politics of Food Ethics
Here’s a useful short piece by James McWilliams, writing for The Atlantic: Meat: What Big Agriculture and the Ethical Butcher Have in Common I’ve repeatedly argued that supporting alternatives to the industrial production of animal products serves the ultimate interest … Continue reading
Posted in agriculture, animal rights, animal welfare, ethics, meat, values
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Sources of Calories and Diet-Industry Ethics
This is interesting, and confirms my non-scientist’s suspicion. It turns out that (at least according to this one study) calories count, but not where they come from. The basic finding is that if you’re trying to lose weight, what matters … Continue reading
Paula Deen’s Ethics
Paula Deen is under fire for failing to announce promptly enough that she has Type 2 diabetes. My first impression: The kind of food Deen promoted was unhealthy 5 years ago. It was unhealthy the day she was diagnosed. It … Continue reading
Posted in diets, ethics, health, media
2 Comments
Pricing Whales
Is it a good idea, or a bad idea, for whale advocates to put their money where their mouths are? From Wired: A Market Proposal for Saving Whales Despite the best efforts of activists, more whales are killed now than … Continue reading
Posted in ethics
4 Comments
Horse Meat Controversy
CTV News reported yesterday that a hidden-camera video has spurred new calls for a ban on horse meat in Canada: Animal rights groups are calling for a ban on the sale of horse meat after disturbing video at a slaughterhouse … Continue reading
Posted in ethics
2 Comments
The Ethics of the Cost of Ethical Food
It’s bad if high prices get in the way of eating a) well or b) ethically, and there are plenty of myths about both. And today alone I’ve read two interesting pieces on the price of food. First, the NYT’s … Continue reading
Posted in consumerism, ethics, farmers markets, local, marketing, organic, prices, values
3 Comments
Store Does End-Run Around Egg Safety
Here’s a chuckle, and a caution: Store sells cartons, gives away eggs A health food store in eastern P.E.I. is looking for a way around health regulations after provincial officials told them to stop selling eggs they buy from local … Continue reading
Posted in certifiction, ethics, health, law, marketing, safety
3 Comments
Is Smaller More Ethical, or Less?
The food world’s fascination with small-scale production of bespoke edibles shows no sign of waning. See, for example, this piece by Emma Sturgess, for The Guardian: From small seeds grow big ideas There are David and Goliath battles in all … Continue reading
Posted in agriculture, ethics, factory farms, farmers, industrial, sustainability, values
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